11/15/2025
You have every right to feel sorrow when you’ve lost someone you love.
Sometimes it feels like that grief is the only thing left connecting us, almost like letting go of a piece of it would erase their importance.
Honestly, it’s normal to cling to that pain; it’s proof that a bond existed that was too powerful to just fade quietly away.
Here’s the thing…I’ve learned, and maybe you’re still learning it too: holding onto sorrow doesn’t mean you have to stop living.
You’re not betraying their memory by smiling again, or by letting yourself feel moments of joy. I used to imagine that every happy moment was somehow disrespectful, or that moving on meant moving away from them. But over time, I realized that the oddly shaped ache of grief and the gentle promise of new experiences can sit together at the table.
I’ll never forget those first days when it felt like sadness was the only language I spoke. If you’re there now, or have been, you’re not alone. I still carry my loss, but I’ve learned not to carry it as a punishment. It visits me when I least expect it, a song, a season, an empty chair, and I honor it by feeling it.
Then, I remind myself: it’s okay to let light in, too. It doesn’t mean I’ve stopped loving the person who’s gone. It means I’m still here, and being here is a way to keep their legacy alive.
You deserve to keep living, even if that means letting sorrow share space with laughter. It’s not an either/or. You can hold both grief and hope, in the same heart.
Maybe next time joy sneaks up on you, let it. You’re not leaving anyone behind. You’re just showing how love and loss can walk together, day by day.
Gary Sturgis - Surviving Grief